Memory encoding evolves over time, involving different subregions of the brain
Memories for specific events can persist for weeks or months, but the neural mechanisms supporting their storage and retrieval change over time. In this study, Ali Golbabaei, working in the Josselyn-Frankland lab at SickKids Hospital, examined this reorganization within memory-representing neuronal populations (engrams) in the prelimbic cortex, a key subregion of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). The mPFC brain region is implicated in the consolidation of recent and remote memories in rodents. This work provides a major conceptual advance in the understanding of consolidation by revealing how memories are reorganized within cortical circuits over time, and how cells called parvalbumin interneurons play key roles in driving this reorganization.
Read the original research publication:
Golbabaei, A., Josselyn, S. A., & Frankland, P. W. (2025). PV-dependent reorganization of prelimbic cortex sub-engrams during systems consolidation. Neuron vol 114 (issue 1) pp 142-158
